Transforming the American Soldier: Educating the Warrior - Diplomat, Dealing with Insurgency, Cultural and Social Landscape, Formulation of Military Education

Numerous first-hand accounts, reports, and news articles prove how little Soldiers understand about the cultures of the countries in which they are currently fighting; this lack of understanding, in turn, has compounded mistakes and problems, thereby increasing the difficulty of successfully combating irregular forces. An initial analysis of curricula in the U.S. Army's Officer and Noncommissioned Officer educational system reveals a lack of training in cultural awareness, as well as a lack of instruction in irregular warfare. As a result, a deficit exists in our Army education system, resulting in our modern day Soldier-turned-warrior-diplomat being unable to read a foreign country's "social landscape", preventing him from properly combating irregular forces. We define the term "social landscape" as the social structure and culture in a foreign country.

Understanding the "social landscape" will only be able to be achieved through direct interaction with the local population. Additionally, this direct interaction with the local population, if combined with an understanding of the cultural and social aspects of the situation, can increase the trust between the military and the foreign population. One of the most effective ways to increase the effectiveness of the U.S. military's operations overseas is to be able to increase the trust of the civilian population towards the Army.

CHAPTER I - A KNOCK AT THE DOOR * CHAPTER II - THE FORMULATION OF MILITARY EDUCATION * CHAPTER III - ROADBLOCKS AND FINDING DETOURS * CHAPTER IV - REPEATING AND RELEARNING HISTORY * CHAPTER V - READING THE "SOCIAL LANDSCAPE" * CHAPTER VI - IMPROVING THE ARMY'S PROFESSIONAL MILITARY EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM * CHAPTER VII - CONCLUSION A. AREAS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH